A quick history lesson, first. RebelRoam was founded in 2015 by four Estonian IT, electronics manufacturing and mobile telecommunications executives with a mission to help people get connected with each other no matter the location.

The original mission evolved over time to focus on the mobility sector, specifically, passenger transportation and the need of those passengers to stay connected with their favorite content including video content regardless where they are.

In our previous blog posts we already looked at the rising trend of video streaming importance among mobile users in general and travelers in particular, so we will skip talking about these statistics again. If you missed those you can access them by following the 2 links at the bottom of this post.

 

Connectivity leader in the mobility sector

Since its inception RebelRoam has delivered over 4,000 onboard Wi-Fi installations across the globe in coach, rail and cruise markets. In the early years we cooperated with Teltonika, MikroTik and Icomera hardware manufacturers, but in 2018 RebelRoam permanently switched to the Peplink hardware after understanding how critical it is for passenger carriers to have access to reliable hardware that is optimized for the best performance and return on investment.

Based on our experience of deploying Peplink internet connectivity hardware so far, we can confidently say that Peplink is a leader in the mobility sector. Peplink has an extensive experience and intimate understanding of what matters most when providing connectivity to passengers on land and offshore.

 

Light and compact for on-the-go deployment

For example, Peplink’s Transit Duo Pro is a multi-modem LTE-A Pro CAT-12 router (also available as a 5G version). It is dedicated to solving connectivity challenges faced by the ground transportation providers. Its dual modem enables it to provide reliable connectivity along the journey by utilizing 2 mobile operator signals simultaneously. The router is light and compact enough for on-the-go deployment and maintenance. This makes it a perfect choice for intercity coach operators.

 

Uncompromisable weather-resistance

In contrast, rail and cruise operators have a set of somewhat different demands towards their connectivity hardware. For instance, for the best coverage, routers on trains and cruise vessels are installed on the outside of a train carriage or a vessel. This results in an uncompromisable need for routers to be weather resistant and possess other industry specific certifications.

This is where the Peplink Dome Pro Duo dual modem 5G CAT-20 router comes in. The router possesses not only IP67, FCC, CE, IC, E-Mark, RoHS, but also railway specific certification: EN 50155, EN 50124 and EN 61373. The use of satellite connectivity, such as Starlink, to complement cellular connection has been a go-to solution in the maritime sector for many years.

More recently, this possibility has also attracted the interest of rail carriers such as Brightline and LTG Link. In both scenarios Dome Pro Duo would be a great connectivity companion to a Starlink antenna via its WAN port.
Here it is also crucial to note that as of 2024 Peplink is the first authorised Starlink technology provider on the market, thus offering one-stop-shop for cellular and satellite connectivity needs.

 

Ultra stable bonded data-tunnel

What sets Peplink hardware apart from the competition is patented SpeedFusion technology. Specifically, for mobile deployments routers take advantage of Bandwidth Bonding service which combines data at the packet level, thus combining the speed and redundancy of multiple connections enabling carriers to offer its passengers reliable connection speed regardless of the location.

Remote management

Lastly, what is hardware good for without user-friendly and useful remote management software. If you have less than 50 devices to manage then most of the remote management systems are good enough, but once you are over 1000 devices then it really starts to matter and becomes one of the most important elements of your deployment. This is where Peplinks InControl2 cloud-based remote management portal stands out. The portal not only allows:

• remote bulk configuration, monitoring and troubleshooting of the hardware,

but also gives access to: 

• white-label captive portal for passenger access control and data capture;
• API service for integration with other operational services such as fleet management (AVL) and real-time passenger information (RTPI).

To conclude, this blog post only mentioned some of the most frequently used Peplink connectivity devices by RebelRoam, but there are others such as access points and enterprise grade SD-WAN routers. Nevertheless, we hope this gave you a good insight into why RebelRoam chose Peplink hardware for its connectivity business and recommends it to its clients.

Feel free to reach out to us by email [email protected] or on LinkedIn if you have any questions or would like a connectivity consultation.

Further reading:

Passenger Wi-Fi vs built-in infotainment – which matters more?

Onboard passenger WiFi fast enough for video streaming: myth or reality?

 

About RebelRoam

RebelRoam is a market leading passenger Wi-Fi optimisation company specialising in coach, cruise and rail verticals servicing a total of over 4,000 vehicles worldwide including Flixbus, Go-Ahead Group, The Travel Corporation, Uniworld, Grand Circle Cruises and many more.
Learn more about RebelRoam at www.rebelroam.com